The present invention relates to fishing lures and, in particular, to a modular lure dressing system wherein a molded head and trailing stem piece either include or support attachments having fringed edges, filaments, elastomer skirts, rattles, open-celled scent pods, weed guards and/or other lure accessories.
A dressing commonly mounted to fishing lures, such as jigs, xe2x80x9cspinner baitsxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cbuzz baitsxe2x80x9d, is a multi-stranded skirt. The skirts are typically fabricated from flat sheets of an elastomer material, such as natural rubber or silicone rubber. Each sheet is processed into a number of regions that define individual skirts and each skirt is defined by a multiplicity of slits or strands that are attached to solid borders that bound the ends of the strands. The slits can be cut to different two-dimensional patterns. The skirts are cut from the sheets with the borders attached and the strands are contained by the borders, until the strands are collected and bound together, when the borders are but from the skirts.
Rubber bands or adhesively bound elastomer collars are frequently used to secure the strands together. After banding, the borders are cut from the strands and the skirt is ready to be mounted to a desired lure. Examples of banded skirts can be found at U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,640,041 and 5,251,395. Examples of xe2x80x9crollupxe2x80x9d skirts or skirts with elastomer collars are shown at U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,517,782 and 5,709,047.
Rollup skirts are formed by rolling and bonding the border of a skirt to a tubular, elastomer core or collar piece with an appropriate adhesive. Once bonded, the border is cutaway and the cut ends of the strands trail from the core piece. The core piece and wrapped skirt stretch when the skirt is mounted to a lure.
Most lures that are accessorized with a skirt include a bulbous, molded head or body. Spinner baits include a formed wire that protrudes from the molded head and typically support one or more metal blades that spin and vibrate as the lure is retrieved. A fishing line is attached to the wire or an eye of a hook that protrudes from the head or body of the lure. As the lure is retrieved, the strands of the skirt undulate with movement of the lure through water to entice a prey species of fish to strike.
Trailer dressings can be added to a lure containing hooks to increase the bulk of the presented offering. A trailer can also be added to customize a desired color scheme at the lure. A trailer dressing may also define the lure, such as with salt water lures which typically include a hook assembly that is threaded through a trailing dressing.
Many lures are constructed with trailer dressings that include natural hair, such as rabbit, deer or squirrel tails mounted to a hook. The strands of hair are secured to the hook with shaped wrappings of a colored thread material that defines a bulbous head.
Various patents that disclose components that may be used with the head and stem pieces of the subject system are U.S. Pat. No. 5,517,782 which discloses a rattle band system. U.S. Pat. No. 5,709,047 discloses multi-stranded skirts with end protrusions. U.S. patent discloses multi-stranded roll-up skirts mounted to a center core piece.
The modular dressing system of the present invention provides lure designers with still other modular lure components that can be used alone or in combination with other components to define a number of alternative, lure dressings. The dressings can, for example, replace natural hair dressings. Several constructions of trailer dressings of the latter type are disclosed that particularly provide a bulbous headpiece and from which a stem piece trails that supports other dressing accessories along a recessed shank. A longitudinal bore extends through the head and stem pieces. The headpiece can be molded to include cut or fringed edges, filamentary members, bored flanges, bristled weed guards, rattles, scent pods etc. The stem piece can be made to plug mount to a mating cavity at the headpiece.
It is accordingly a primary object of the invention to provide a modular system of lure dressing components that can be fitted to or used to define a variety of alternative fishing lures.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a molded headpiece that can be molded from rubber, acrylic or other materials and from which a stem piece trails that supports multi-stranded skirt dressings.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a head-piece that can variously include fringed edges, filamentary rattles, bristled weed guards, a concave recess to shelter attached accessories, a hollow rattle chamber, fixed or movable ornamental eyes, etc.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a stem piece that plug mounts to a mating cavity at the headpiece.
It is a further object of the invention to provide salt water lure components that support a hook harness and have a relatively large molded headpiece that can include rattle beads within a hollow chamber, fixed or movable ornamental eyes, and/or flecked decorative members and which headpiece detachably interconnects with a trailing stem-piece that separately supports one or more multi-stranded skirts, rattles, or other accessories.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a silicone rubber skirt dressing that includes molded protrusions that project from the strands at tailored intervals.
The foregoing and other objects, advantages and distinctions of the invention are obtained in a number of presently preferred, lure dressings that are compatible with several interchangeable components. In one series of dressings, integrally molded head and stem pieces are provided that include an annular recess along the shank of the stem that is set forward of a flanged tail piece and that supports other dressings, for example, a banded or roll-up multi-stranded skirt and/or a collar from which filaments and rattles trail and/or a scent pod. The headpiece can include fringed edges, filaments with interconnected rattles or bristled weed guards.
In another series of dressings, a detachable stem piece is shaped to plug mount to a cavity at the headpiece. A variety of different dressing components can be fitted to the shape of the stem piece prior to being mounted to the headpiece.
A novel multi-stranded skirt having a number of tailored protrusions at each strand is also disclosed. The protrusions can be molded to project transverse or orthogonal to the strands. The shape and height of the protrusions can also be tailored.
Still other objects, advantages, distinctions and constructions of the invention will become more apparent from the following description with respect to the appended drawings. Similar components and assemblies are referred to in the various drawings with similar alphanumeric reference characters. The description should not be literally construed in limitation of the invention. Rather, the invention should be interpreted within the broad scope of the further appended claims.